Catching Up

Here are a few posts to catch everybody up on what we have been up to the last few weeks:

• Thanksgiving


• Mom and Dad's Visit


• CSI: The Mystery of the Scattered Trash


• The Sutton's Visit

Thanksgiving

Tom and I had a quiet Thanksgiving, just the two of us. I spent most of the day in the kitchen. Tom played games and did some much needed yard work.

I decided to try and make everything from scratch this year, it turned out really well. My favorite was the pumpkin pie (made from a fresh pumpkin). The only thing that came from cans was the green bean casserole. We were stuffed by the end of dinner, and had lots of leftovers.

I also picked up another turkey from the store (on sale) so that we could freeze some turkey for sandwiches. The turkey I made for Thanksgiving was 9.3 lbs. The one in my fridge waiting to be cooked weighs almost 20 lbs. We will be eating turkey until next Thanksgiving.

You can see the pictures here.

We have also been enjoying the four day weekend that comes along with Thanksgiving. Lots of resting, quiet time, and of course some gaming and crafts.

Hope everyone enjoyed the holiday as much as we did. We certainly missed our family, and look forward to seeing everyone for Christmas.

Mom and Dad's Visit

We had a great time with Mom and Dad. Woody especially loved their visit. We spent a lot of time hanging out playing pool and ping pong. Tom won the ping pong championship, but Mom sure gave him a run for his money (must be all that tennis training she had as a kid). Of course we went bowling. Tom and I ran away with the couples championship. Mom bowled a great game (147?) to take the women's high game. And Dad... Dad is a mean left handed bowler ;-).

We ate way too much food at several great restaurants. I think the highlight of their trip was our visit to Brattonsville, a historic plantation, where one of the revolutionary war battles took place. See all the pictures here (Brattonsville + a few extras).

The last night they were here we played an all time favorite, minigolf mania. As always, there was lots of laughing (mostly at Mom and Dad). Then the following moring we met up with Tom for a late breakfast at Cracker Barrel before dropping them off at the airport. The weather was quite chilly why they were here. Especially the day they left (hence the freezing faces in the pic).

There time here was way too short, and we miss them already. Having family visit is so wonderful, but at the same time serves as a stinging reminder how much we miss them. Without a doubt leaving family has been the most difficult part of the move to South Carolina.

You are welcome back any time. Oh yah, thanks for all the help with dishes ;-) And, Woody and Vlad say hi.

CSI: The Mystery of the Scattered Trash

The crime scene:


















The evidence: (The only escape route from the kennel)



















Suspect #1:


















Suspect #2:



















After reviewing the evidence it was determined that suspect #1 was too big to fit through the only escape route. Suspect #2 was tried and convicted of disturbing the trash.

"It wasn't me"

The Sutton's Visit

The weekend before Mom and Dad arrived, my Aunt, Uncle, and cousins came for a quick visit. They had been in North Carolina for a wedding and decided to make a quick two hour drive down to see us. They arrived in time for a late Saturday dinner, and left a little before lunch on Sunday.

Although their visit was short, we had a great time just hanging out. For those of you that don't know, my Aunt and Uncle have 11 kids. Only 7 came to visit (3 are married and have kids of their own). That meant I needed to feed 11 people dinner and breakfast. I made two pans of lasagna, two loaves of garlic bread, and a large ceasar salad for dinner. For breakfast I made three quiches (bacon, sausage, and ham).

Chris stayed around an extra day and we went bowling and watched a movie he had brought. He left early the next morning to meet up with his dad to go hunting.

See pics here.

November Already!

I can't believe it is already November. The fall here in South Carolina is absolutely beautiful. I will take some pictures and post them here very soon. The weather is nice as well. We have enjoyed several days in the high 60s low 70s, with clear blue skies.

As always we start November off by celebrating Tom's birthday (Mom's too). Tom requested eggs benedict for his b-day breakfast, and I happily obliged. He then opened his gifts from family.

Jose Manuel came around 12 for a few more games (darts, pool, and 3-par golf). After golf we were planning to go to dinner, but decided to wait until Sunday since we were pretty tired.

When we got home the power was out. I frosted Tom's cake (luckily, I baked the cake earlier that day) by flashlight. Then sang happy birthday to him with just the light from the fireplace and his birthday candles. We spent the rest of the evening hanging out on the couch with the fire glowing. It ended up making for a really nice evening.

On Sunday, we relaxed around the house, did a few chores, hit the gym, and went to dinner at Ruby Tuesday's. Overall, I think he enjoyed his birthday. I will post pictures of the birthday boy as soon as I steal them off his camera.

Believe or Not, A Post

WOW, the last three months have flown bye. I am not sure where to even pick up. July, August, and September were spent getting used to the new area, working, and working some more (on the house). We are almost completely unpacked; just a few boxes remain (primarily books).

October has been full of fun. The first weekend (plus some) was spent with Ma and Pa. We had a blast. Check out Tom's blog for more details.

The second weekend, my friend Edgar from Fox came to visit. We had fun hanging out at Carowinds with Brian (another friend from Fox, who drove up from Charleston for the day) on Saturday. After Carowinds we went to dinner and a movie (Body of Lies). Sunday we all went bowling (as usual ;-) ). It was great to be able to catch up and hang out with Edgar.

The third weekend we flew to New Jersey to spend time with the Ham's. We had a great time playing with the kids, celebrating Darin's 3rd birthday, and closing down the local bowling alley.

As I am typing, Jose Manuel and Tom are hitting golf balls in the backyard. Jose Manuel is a colleague of Tom's visiting from Spain. He hosted Tom in Spain last October. We have also played a few games of pool and darts (DeBoard tradition). For dinner I will be serving a traditional Spanish dish called Paella.

In addition to all the fun, Tom has been travelling the majority of the month and is leaving again on Monday. We will have a couple of weeks to recover from all the busyness and then my parent will be coming in mid November. YEAH! We can't wait to show them around the South.

Here are a couple of other random fact, thoughts, happenings, etc.

• Doggers are happy
• I bowled a 176 on Thursday!!!!!!!
• Have you ever heard of a to-go cup? Almost all of the restaurants in the South not only offer to-go boxes for your food, but to-go cups for your drink as well. We have even been offered to-go cups for our water. ;-)
• I am being reassigned at work, yet again... This makes five work assignments in 2 1/2 years. At least I am being reassigned for positive reasons. I always like a new challenge.
• I have a wonderful personal trainer named Rob. For the last 3 months I have been working out with him twice a week. It has really helped with commitment and I am seeing great results with my strength and cardiovascular health. Now, if I could just figure out how to lose the weight as well. Still working on that.....

Hope this update finds everyone happy and healthy. I promise I won't make you wait three months for the next one.

A Few Scores From South Carolina

The Battle of the Beasts

Vladimir: 0, Fire Ants: 1

Yard Games

Laurie: 0, Mosquitos: 15

Water Games

Tom: 1, Drain: 1

Pool Play

Tom:2, Laurie: 1

Stay tuned for the weekend rundown...

Birthday Fun!

If you have been over here you have seen the sneek peak at the fun Tom planned for my birthday.

After working a half day, we left the office at 11:45. The first stop was massages. We both had 90 minute massages at a clinic in Pineville that specializes in neuro muscular massage. It was great.

Next we drove to the US National Whitewater Center, home of the world's largest artificial whitewater river. We had an absolute blast rafting and got soaking wet.

In addition to the artificial river there is also rock climbing, high ropes, and trails. It is definately in our plans to go back.

We were both pretty wiped after rafting so we headed home to feed the dogs, and then went in search for pizza. We were planning to go to a pizzeria that is owned by a member of one of the US pizza crust throwing teams (ask Tom). However, we couldn't find it.

After some driving around we ended up at Ouzo's. A greek pizza restaurant. We ran into some of my coworkers and chatted for a minute, then enjoyed the Ouzo special.

I must say, Tom has yet again lived up to his title of "World's Best Birthday Planner" aka "World's Best Husband".

Thanks again Tom, it was a blast.

Vote Off

There was a three way tie for my new blog title, so I am having a vote off. Have fun!

Opinion Polls & Market Research

The Best Get Well Message Ever ...

The names in the following message have been changed to protect the innocent (errr, those who wish not to be named).

Dear Mrs. Brown,

We have been wondering how things are going with you. We think of you and pray for you every day. It just doesn't seem the same not to have you coming to visit Thelma and family in the summer time, as you used to do. I'm sure you miss that, too.

(so far so good, but wait)

But for right now, the best thing you can do is co-operate with Louise and the others who are trying to keep you comfortable. I've heard it said, "Old age isn't for cowards!" Maybe you're not old yet, but your getting there.

(uh geez, what a nice thing to say)

Our garden is looking good, as we've had lots of rain interspersed with sunshine.

With love,
Lucy and Ethel

It's Time To Vote

Opinion Polls & Market Research

Portland Bugs

I think someone above is trying to prepare me for the bugs I will encounter when I get to South Carolina. The license plate said BUG4ART. The trailer picutred had a matching truck pulling it.

New Carpet and Counters

Caught In The Act

I finally caught Vlad rolling on camera. Albeit, I really need to get a video for full effect. Wouldn't it be nice to have a digital camera that also takes videos. HINT, HINT TOM, my b-day is only a month away ;-)
















And, a few bonus pictures. Below are the crates that Woody and Vlad will be transported to South Carolina in. Now, you all KNOW that there isn't a huge size difference between the two dogs, but there certainly is a BIG difference in the crates.

A while back I purchased the bag (on the left) and a different crate for Woody. MOST of the airlines simply stated that the dog had to be able to stand and turn around in the crate. All good.

Until, we found out we were flying delta and Woody would be travelling cargo. The requirements stated that the dog had to be able to sit in the crate with their head erect. Woody is about 13" tall which was the height of the first crate, but he is taller than that when he sits up. SO, back to the pet store it was. The next size up was 21" tall. Woody now has more than enough room.

FYI Tom, I also bought the required attachable food and water container and the LIVE ANIMAL stickers. So now we are all ready to come home to you. And, Woody likes his new crate, he went right in. Heidi tried but couldn't quite fit.

Blog Title

So here's the deal. I need a new blog title since we will no longer be considered NoPos. Please leave me a comment with your suggestion(s). Once I have a few I will post my three favorite for voting.

There will be a prize for the person who submits the winning entry in order to encourage participation.

HAVE FUN!

Here is what I have been up to ...

Home Improvements...

Outside of the house before.
















Outside after a new roof, trim boards, gutters and a repainted door.

















A close up of the door. Darrell repainted the door and did a phenomenal job, it is my favorite improvement so far. It really improves the curb appeal.

Living room before.

Living room after painted ceilings and walls. The walls are actually a light beige color but it doesn't come across real well in the photos.

Fireplace before.

And after. I still need to clean the fireplace

Hallway before.

And after.

Dining area before.

After. The door still needs a coat of polyurethane.

The kitchen before (sort of). Darrell had already taken down the vent that matched the mustard yellow counters, replaced the light over the sink, and Pennie and I cleaned and restored the cabinets.

The kitchen in process. I still have to re laminate the counters and paint. The majority of the kitchen and dining area is painted, but I am waiting until the countertops are finished to paint this part of the kitchen. Notice the freshly painted range hood compliments of Darrell, master of the aerosol can :-)

More to follow as the improvements continue. Two of the bedrooms are also painted. Here is what I have left.

1. Paint the master bedroom

2. Paint the bathrooms

3. Install new electrical outlets, switches, and covers.

4. Install carpet (scheduled for a week from Monday, may move it to Friday)

5. Re laminate countertops (second estimate tomorrow, hoping it's better than the first)

6. New molding in the living room, hallway, and around the front and kitchen doors.

7. CLEAN!

8. Yard work.

9. Install new air conditioner???

As you can see I am keeping busy, but I am starting to see the light at the end of the tunnel. Hope you enjoyed the pictures. Well, those of you who haven't been working right along side of me. I can't thank Darrell, Pennie, Mom, and Dad enough for all their help.

P.S. Tom you now owe me pictures of the fence.

Here is what Vlad has been up to ...

Vladimir does not get along with other dogs very well so he spends the majority of the time at the Osterud household in his crate. He spends most of his evenings with me hanging out upstairs in the guest bedroom. I tried to get a picture of him rolling on the carpet. It is pretty funny to watch him roll around, but impossible to actually catch him in the act on camera.























Normally the dogs sleep in a crate at night. Neither Tom or I are particularly fond of sleeping with animals. However, since Vlad is couped up so much right now I have been making an exception. Here is a picture shortly before bed. He is quite the cuddle bug.

Here is what Woody has been up to...

A DAY IN THE LIFE OF WOODY AT GRANDMA AND GRANDPA'S

Playing with the BIG dogs

Helping with the chores (he LOVES helping wash the dishes)

This is what he had to say when I told him he couldn't stay forever...

As if I don't have enough to do ...

A few weeks back, when Tom and I were getting ready to have all our stuff packed and shipped to South Carolina, I decided to take on a "little" project. I had not been able to use my laptop in a while because the power connection on my system board was loose. The battery is REALLY old and does not hold a charge, so it must be plugged in to work. Since the connection was loose it would randomly turn off when it lost its connection.

Since my new desktop had to be packed and shipped to South Carolina and I am staying with my parents, I had two options for a computer while I am still in Oregon.

Option 1: Use my parent's Mac .

Option 2: Re-solder the power on my system board.

I chose option 2, since I am not a big fan of Macs.

I THOUGHT this would be a quick project. I ASSUMED I could just remove the back panel of the laptop and re solder the connection. I was WRONG!!!!!!!! In order to get to the system board I had to remove every single component from my laptop from the top down. The following pictures show all the components laying around misc. places in the house.